Long Live Love

Sparkle of Hope

"Hope is being able to see that there is light despite all of the darkness."

-Desmond Tutu

There is this little voice in everyone's head that says the things you just don't want to hear. It's usually the things you're probably supposed to do, but you really just don't want to. That little voice in Katie's head was telling her to turn around, find Oliver and tell him that she still loves him, but she didn't. She just kept imagining how pathetic she would look chasing after a man whose crushed her hopes on more than one occasion. And so she decided to ignore that little voice in hopes that one day it would just die.

Oliver soon found himself with everyone knowing his purpose in life, and him still being in the dark about it. Once upon time, he thought he knew what he was supposed to do. Cross the names off the list like his father wanted, and then one day it all went to hell and his life's mission was just obliterated. At least that's what he thought. Oliver needed some clarity, to talk to someone who always seemed to tell him the things he didn't see or didn't want to see. There were a couple of people in his life that fit that description and the majority of them weren't talking to him at the moment and so he went to the person who never turned him away.

Oliver sat with his hands folded over a table, in the dim lit, cold room. His eyes scanned the room, and a sigh escaped his lips when suddenly the door opened and appeared the woman he wanted to see.

"Hey mom." Oliver says standing to his feet, but stopping. He wants to walk around to hug her, but he remember the rules about the limited touching that were told to him before he came inside. The woman gave him a smile, as they both finally sat down.

"I'm sorry, I meant to be here sooner." Oliver says and Moira simply shakes her head.

"Oh, no, no Oliver. There are going to be enough apologies from me for the rest of my life."

"You don't have to be." Oliver replied with a shake of his head. "And I know Thea hasn't come to visit, I'm just sorry no one's been here but your lawyer."

"That's not true." Moira replied with a smile. "Katherine has come to visit me, one or two times a week since I've been brought in. I told her that she didn't have to, but she still comes." Oliver stared at his mother for a moment, turning away slightly with a smile. "So Europe?"

"Uh, yeah." Oliver says turning back to his mother. "I just needed to get away. After Tommy, I just couldn't deal."

"I get it, completely, but I think you should know that if I weren't a ward of the state at the moment I would probably give you a smack to the back of the head dear." Oliver looked at his mother in confusion. "I am your mother, and I want nothing more than I want you happy and she was right there and you left."

"Mom-"

"You were hurting and sad and in pain about Tommy, about me, about the city and you ran from the one thing I think could've made it all a little bit bearable. I love you Oliver, and I've chosen to let you make your own decisions in life, but I think on this you should listen to your mother. I don't know what you're afraid of, but I'm telling you that if you don't get over it, you will lose her and I know you don't want that to happen." Oliver looked at his mother for a few moments taking in her words. "You love her."

"I do. I really do." Oliver spoke, a smile coming to Moira's lips at her son's admission. She reached over and took her son's hand in hers.

"So what are you going to do about it?"

When Katie returned home, she headed back down her basement where she sat staring up to the information she gathered on the vigilantes. It was her new distraction from the man who was proving every minute how much of her heart he still had. She didn't realize how long she'd been sitting there until her phone rang snapping her from the daze she'd fell under. Katie looked down to the number before bringing the phone to her ear.